WifeOHunkyJohn

To Kez

xxx

OMG!!!

Congratulations!!! xxx

Finally after 946 days, my husband has been approved for his greencard. It better be the 10 year card!!

I saw this and its pretty cool. Basically it doesn't matter who is right and who is wrong, it's all a matter of what you plan to do about it.

Global Warming Argument

edited to correct that it is from Slide.com not YouTube. My bad

I'm thinking that the email function for USCIS might be down because we got touches, and no emails even though the online status changed twice. It was for the I-90 we filed (touches and updates are on the AOS).

Maybe we will get them later or something

You have to file an I-90 to change the info on your green card. Unless it is an USCIS error, there are fees.

Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS

Current Status: Card Mailed

On November 8, 2007, we mailed the new card directly to the address we have on file. You should receive your new card within 30 days. If you do not, or if you move before you get it, call customer service.

Nothing about posting a new letter or anything so we will just have to wait for the card to see if it is error free.

Woohoo, so exciting

We haven't been getting any emails though... Maybe the website is having issues

Just by chance I checked our online status tonight to see if there was anything new to report since we filed our I-90. Imagine how shocked I was to read this:

Application Type: I485, APPLICATION TO REGISTER PERMANENT RESIDENCE OR TO ADJUST STATUS

Current Status: Card production ordered.

On November 6, 2007, we ordered production of your new card. Please allow 30 days for your card to be mailed to you. If we need something from you we will contact you. If you move before you receive the card, call customer service. You can also receive automatic e-mail updates as we process your case. Just follow the link below to register.

You can choose to receive automatic case status updates, which will be sent via email. Please click here to create an account online.

If you would like to see our current Processing Dates for Applications and Petitions, click here.

Note: Case Status is available for Applications and Petitions which were filed at USCIS Service Centers. If you filed at a USCIS Local Office, your case status may not be reviewable online but for processing times on forms filed at that Office please, click here.

If you have a question about case status information provided via this site, or if you have not received a decision from USCIS within the current processing time listed, please contact the USCIS Customer Service at (800) 375 – 5283 or 1-800-767-1833 (TTY).

There was no new email issued, at least not yet anyway, and we did get 6 touches between October 29th and November 4th, which did get our hopes up. Oddly enough the "touch" today is dated November 7th, which is unusual only since all the US timezones still have it as the 6th right now.

But I'm not complaining. Here's hoping the new card is error free - I'll let you know when it gets here.

Annie

The LA Times has a map of the fire perimeters for those looking to keep informed.

It angers me that there are those who think all we are doing here is fretting and sitting on our hands while SoCal burns. There's not a lot else we can do right now, some of us, besides volunteer at the shelters that have been springing up in our communities to help and protect the evacuees. It's a heartbreaking situation and if I could go on the front lines and help the firefighters, you can bet your bottom dollar I would be there right now. Sadly as I have completely no experience, my efforts to help would likely only hinder their security - that's why they don't have a call for volunteers being issued in our community right now.

I like that this thread is offering words of comfort and support, as well as real-world experiences from those in the midst of it. It helps us stay humble and connected to each other, even while we may not all live in the same state or be near enough to reach out to each other. I hope that support and encouragement continues to be available to VJers.

Please be safe. And if you feel restless and want to help, my husband posted info on the Red Cross and how to volunteer. Though it might not feel like much, every little bit of help is appreciated, and it *does* have an effect.

The original interactive map was created by the LA Times and is much easier to navigate, and is bigger so its easier to read. Seems varying news and blog sites thought it so useful they all chose to use it.

To get to it, click here, and select Interactive Google Map under the main picture and headline. It's a pop-up so I don't know how to link it to here other than to simply tell you about it.

Annie

California Fire map

You can literally zoom in on any wildfire location and click on the latest information.

Thought it might be useful

I send a prayer to all of you affected by the fires. I don't care if you're rich, poor, single, have a family. It's still awful to be affected by something like this, and it matters naught if you lose your home and you're rich or you lose you're home and you're poor. Everyone is suffering, imo.

Both my brothers live in LA and I haven't heard from them yet. My family is getting pretty tired of natural disasters! Earthquakes, hurricanes, fires. Sheesh.

(((hug)))

Not everyone affected is a rich celebrity - aside from Malibu, these areas are middle class

(((hug)))

thank you. And our friends in Malibu are not rich celebrities either, but they had to be evacuated. The fire and smoke are so close to their house it can literally lick their walls if it wants to

ok good. they can afford to build 10 new homes if they want them.

So are you telling me that you only have compassion for some of those affected by the fires, and none for those wealthy enough to afford to rebuild?

How heartless!

This is the view of the I-15 from the Northbound lane that shows how close the fire is becoming. We can start to see the smoke from just after the Highway 395 exit.

They turned the inside lanes into escape lanes for anyone wanting to turn around, and for emergency and security vehicles to use. The valley up ahead, for those who don't know, is the route the I-15 takes. The fire is mainly on the right hand side of the north bound freeway lanes, around the truck scales location, and the freeway was closed between the 76 and the scales. We are all being taken off at the 76 exit.

I didn't get any more after that due to 1) a poor vantage point from the car park and 2) a swift and sudden evacuation as the fire started heading our way.

Being up north I have no experience with this. Why do these fires start?

The Malibu fire is thought to have started because the Santa Ana winds blew down some power lines and due to the fact rain fall over the last few years has left the ground thoroughly parched, the sparks started the fire. This is still an investigation in progress but the downed power lines seen on the news leads people to believe it is likely. The hot Santa Ana winds are carrying the embers miles which is why the fire in Malibu is hop-scotching over buildings, sparing some and burning others.

I don't know what started the San Diego fires but the dry brush, high winds and humidity are all factors in why it is fueling itself. There have been some news reports that some of the fires in SoCal are as a result of arson.

Best I can come up with after watching the news pretty much all day since Sunday Morning.

And Robinlake - thank you but I don't feel I did a brave thing. It is the firefighters facing these infernos that deserve ourthe praise, support and prayers.

Stay safe everyone

(I didn't get too many pictures but I will try and post a few ok ones)

I volunteer for an animal rescue and some of the dogs awaiting homes were in a shelter in San Marcos. Yesterday there were mandatory evacuations within about a 5 mile radius of their location and it was decided to evacuate the dogs early before the situation became critical. I headed down the I-15 and made it to the shelter in under half an hour (slightly forgetting the speed limit, oops ) but I had to drive through a wall of thick black smoke just near where the truck scales are.

Trying to get back up the 15, however, everyone was being taken off at the 76 because of the said same fire I saw the beginnings of on my way down. I ended up having to wait there for hours due to the roads being blocked and there being no decent road home available. All of a sudden, roughly 3 hours into my wait at the car park just by the 15, there was an emergency evacuation of all of us as the wall of black smoke was huge and rolling our way. It was less than a mile away and looked like something out of a horror movie as it literally seemed to be eating its way up the side of the mountain.

Sadly due to the time constraints there was no chance to take pictures but I did eventually make it home thanks to a CHP giving me an alternative fire-free and smoke-free route.

My trip took 6 hours start to finish.

All I can say is my heart and my prayers are with those brave firefighters dealing with all of this, and the police forces who are helping keep us all safe.

And I think mandatory public floggings should be instigated for every arsonist responsible. My opinion of *them* is more than I am allowed to print here.

keep safe everyone.

Annie

I was just about to post on here last night, to see if any of my fellow I-90ers had any updates or news, and to say that my I-485 had been getting a lot of touching action of late (twice the week before last, twice last week, and on Monday and Tuesday this week - all without any status change), when I got an email from the lovely CRIS saying 'card production ordered'. Two emails saying 'card production ordered', in fact. Yay! Although I won't get too excited until the card has a) safely arrived and b ) been checked to make sure they haven't messed it up this time. No idea if I should expect the same 'welcome notice'/'approval notice' emails that you get when the I-485 is approved, we shall see...

For anyone who's interested - I never did get any kind of NOA (and was told that I wouldn't get one, and that I wouldn't get any new receipt number) - I just saw a few touches on my original I-485, and then got the 'card production ordered' email, referring to the receipt number for my I-485 as if they'd only just approved it.

I'll report back when the card actually shows up (am now worried it'll get lost in the mail or something - we have had LOADS of mail not turning up lately), and hopefully I'll be able to say it's actually all correct this time!

Any news, anyone else?

Congratulations and fingers crossed there are no more errors

I was wondering how they let you know about updates and the like since there is no receipt when you file an I-90 "d" (uscis error) and now I know. I feel suitably reassured that there is at least *some* way to check it.

Congratulations again, and thanks for the update.

Annie

For most aliens other than Canadian visitors or visitors with Border Crossing Cards, admission or parole is reflected on the Form I-94 Arrival-Departure Record issued by an INS inspector to every alien who enters the US. The INA lists2 classes of aliens who are not eligible for adjustment of status, including those who entered the US illegally, have worked in the US without authorization (or with expired authorization), and/or have failed to continuously maintain lawful status since entry.[source]

It goes on to talk about the 3 year and 10 year ban.

Relationship of 3- and 10-year bars to admissibility on Section 245(i)

The Illegal Immigration and Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act (IIRIRA) enacted in September 1996 provided that an alien who accumulates between 6 months and 1 year of unlawful presence in the US after April 1, 1997, becomes inadmissible for 3 years if (s)he subsequently leaves the US. Even if an alien who had become subject to a bar were to obtain a visa at a consulate, (s)he would not be admitted into the US upon arrival. Similarly, an alien who accumulates one year or longer of unlawful presence becomes inadmissible for 10 years.

Overstays are not generally forgiven, I don't think. They can result in the person being barred from re-entry into the USA for a period of years, for example 10 years.

My understanding is that someone who comes in and "overstays" has not fulfilled the requirements of their visa, and the requirements are that they stay x amount of time for whatever purpose and then leave. The K1 terms are to come in to the USA and get married, after which they are eligible and subsequently file for adjustment of status.

An "overstay" and an "out of status" are not the same. An overstay results in someone not leaving the USA when they are supposed to. An out of status results in someone not filing an AOS before the I-94 expires.

That's my opinion of it anyway.

Edited to include: a K1 who does not get married within the 90 day window stipulated by their visa falls into the overstay category, if they stay in the USA after that 90 days expires. It's all spelled out in the K1 paperwork and when the K1 visa is issued. Anyone who comes in on a visa has "terms and conditions" that apply to that specific visa.

Let me see if I can expand on what my husband said. We waited over a year to file (successfully) for our AOS. That meant for 1 year I was out of status. According to multiple communications between USCIS, as well as senate and congress offices, I was not illegal because I entered legally, and in the transition between the I-94 expiring and the AOS being filed, I went into a gray area called "out of status". I was still legally allowed to be in the country, was not deportable because I had met the terms of the visa I came in on, but because there is no set time on the AOS for when to file, I was then in limbo. That meant that I didn't have any papers that let me get a California ID, nor did it mean I was legally allowed to work. But I was allowed to stay - big difference between being illegal and being out of status = illegals have not been given permission to stay. All I had to do, before filing the AOS application, was to carry around a copy of my visa and my marriage certificate and that would suffice... It might have been hard to explain to anybody who didn't fully understand the complexities of immigration but had they called USCIS, it would have been explained the same to them as it was to me.

Now, the problem with being in limbo is that you become a sort of "miscellaneous" entity. You are neither a lawful permanent resident, nor are you an illegal immigrant. It is because of this gray area that USCIS recommends not leaving yourself in that status for too long. Being unable to work and drive and have a hard copy of your status makes life difficult. If you are a lawful permanent resident, you have rights and protections in law. If you are an illegal you still have some rights, but when it comes to staying in the country, because you are unlawfully present, you are deportable. When you are in limbo, as "out of status" makes you, you still have some rights and protections, but holding onto them is hard because there is technically a gap in your paperwork, a sort of incompleteness if you like between your transition from K1 to AOS and permanent resident.

Had we known that it would take 13 months to get the green card, and had we been able to see the complexities and frustrations of having an "out of status" status, we would have done things very differently. But then they do say hindsight is 20-20.

If every person who came in on a K1 visa suddenly became an illegal alien the minute their I-94 ran out, their ability to adjust status would be severely compromised. There would be waivers that needed to be filed, and at best, anyone who came in on a K1 and didn't adjust status in time to beat their I-94 expiring, their husband or wife would have to file for a spousal visa (i-130) in order to adjust as, technically, being an illegal alien at the point of the I-94 expiring would, to all intents and purposes, make the K1 process redundant.

It is really unclear from the point of view of USCIS information why they don't have more specific guidelines for those applying to adjust status as the "illegal" versus "out of status" argument has been discussed time and time again. All I can say is, apart from what I outlined above, I had no problems adjusting status and received my green card from the California Service Center 13 months after I applied - it was the FBI namecheck that took so long. Had there been any point in that process that USCIS determined that I was an illegal alien because I had an expired i-94 and had not been timely in filing for AOS, they should, in theory, have cast aside my application the moment it was received, queried it or denied it, or in some way reacted to it if I were, indeed, an illegal. As they did not, and approved it without fuss, the "out of status" argument stands, in my books.

Personally I would recommend to everyone to file for AOS as soon as they can, simply because there are no guarantees on how long it will take to be completed, and having a "pending" status isn't as bad as having an "out of status" one. There is comfort in knowing the papers are filed, that someone is looking at them, and that the approval will happen at some point. Being out of status, from a psychological point of view, is a stressful place to find yourself (I did it for a year) and you always feel as though you have to justify or explain the immigration process and how "illegal" and "out of status" are not the same. Also, just being able to show a receipt from USCIS is enough to make you feel as though your position in the country is okay, albeit "pending", but being out of status brings the potential for conflict, long-winded explanations, and misunderstandings that are just more than is necessary to deal with when you also have the new country, new husband (or wife), new home, etc on top of all that.

So even though it was a bit longer than I intended it to be, I hope my explanation proves helpful.

And if anyone has any concerns or questions, feel free to PM me.

best wishes

Annie

I just want to apologize for getting WifeOfHunkyJohn and JohnK mixed up. Sorry Annie.

No harm done

(peace offering)

How many accounts do you have, John (aka Hunky John, John and Annie)?

I have one (wifeohunkyjohn) and my husband has the other (John & Annie).

So neither one of you is connected to this JohnK? Ok, it's just funny because the only thing that's ever been posted about from that account is pretty much the same exact type of posts that come from both of your accounts - illegal immigration legislation issues. It's all good though so long as I'm not being singled out here as the one flooding this site with illegal immigration threads. You have every right to post how ever many illegal immigration posts you both want to put up on this site, tell VJ members to sign petitions, what have you, but let's be honest - you're both involved with the issue politically. I'm sure it's some kind of deliberate strategy by whatever organization you belong to to flood an immigration forum in hopes of feeding the frenzy. But keep on doing it...and I won't be silent either.

Don't know JohnK, sorry. Like I said, we only have 2 accounts - one each. if you are concerned about the poster, I am sure there's a way Captain Ewok can trace who the real person is behind the login name.

John (my hubby) doesn't really post on illegal immigration the way I do. He is way more helpful to newbies and stuff, answering questions and so on, offering them advice and helping them out. It's me that googles updated legislation or posts interesting things I have found in the news.

What makes you think we are politically motivated? I'm just a regular person who had to wait 13 months to get my green card (which subsequently had an error in it so now we have filed an I-90). I feel strongly about certain media outlets who post endless articles on illegal immigration then refuse to post anything about the backlogs at USCIS, the black hole of an FBI Namecheck that can't be expedited by man nor beast...

I also like to be informed and keep up to date with what I can relating to legislation, or any immigration proposals that are on the table. I am, after all, an immigrant and you just never know when something will directly affect you. And I'm nosy, I admit it. The only reason I didn't become a journalist is cos I'm too nice

I'm sure it's some kind of deliberate strategy by whatever organization you belong to to flood an immigration forum in hopes of feeding the frenzy.

I can't tell if you are kidding here or not, but I think you have me mistaken with someone else.

Hope that clears things up for you.

Annie

I have 2 tattoos and dream of being a biker chick and owning my own Harley.

I am actually a geek though.

Just an idea, but what if we all have a moratorium on any discussions about illegal immigration? It is a highly divisive issue which never fosters any kind of resolution or resolve other than people here expressing their opinions on the matter over and over again. Last night, my patriotism as an American was put into question once again, only by two people on here who I have known for awhile, like and admire on many accounts. It really has shaken me and I wondered if my opinion is no longer welcome here.

I enjoy the rapport and the heated discussions on many topics here, and I would hope that I have as much validity in stating my opinion here as anyone, as I welcome anyone to disagree by actually arguing on the merits of what I've said rather than dismissing my opinion as coming from someone who dislikes America.

So I propose that we all have a voluntary moratorium on discussing illegal immigration for awhile (say, how about the whole month of October?). That means no posted articles from peejay or WifeOfHunkyJohn. No references in other threads to illegal immigration. How about it?

Seems I'm being talked about and yet nobody had the good manners to even let me know.

The last time I posted anything related to immigration, it was on September 13th yet I find it odd that you bring up my name when you are having a bad day reading threads about illegal immigration. It's hardly like I am flooding the boards with them now, is it?

Stevo, if your belief is shaken right now, don't participate in the threads. Asking for a moratorium because YOU'RE upset is just selfish imo.

People will post what they want...if you want to participate, do...if not, don't.

I believe the same. If you don't want to read something, don't read it. If you don't want to comment on it, don't comment on it. If you have a problem with a post or a thread, report it.

IMMIGRATION FORUM....not an ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION FORUM. read it again

and maybe hes just sick of ppl being totally INSANE about their opinions that they go to far lengths to be rude and hateful. its sickening around here with that stuff

Excuse me?

How many accounts do you have, John (aka Hunky John, John and Annie)?

I have one (wifeohunkyjohn) and my husband has the other (John & Annie).